


Rip Tide

by Arones



Series: Oceanic Musings [3]
Category: Sanctuary (TV)
Genre: Adventure, Angst, F/M, Fantasy, Humor, Romance, Science Fiction, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-20
Updated: 2012-06-20
Packaged: 2017-11-08 04:38:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 21,654
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/439233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arones/pseuds/Arones
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Will is once again dead and Magnus has some people she needs to deal with</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Yellow Warnings

**Author's Note:**

> No 3 in the "Oceanic Musings Series"

Helen made her hands into a fist, one heel pressing into the other, fingers straight out and not laced. She began to press down on Will's chest. His ribs bowed under the pressure and followed her fingers when her body lifted back up. Ten times she did it before looking at his face again. She moved her hand to his wrist and felt nothing. His neck and the result was the same. Her eyes wandered over the monitor to her left and there was still no change. "Damn it Will!" She pressed down again, her body moving with the action. "After…all…this…No." Ten more times and she lifted up again, her fingers curling around his wrist.

She fisted her hand in frustration and pounded it down on his chest until it rested. "Damn it!" There was a beat. Her body jumped back before her hands flung once again to his wrist and neck one after the other just to be sure. She felt the pulse beat gently, slowly but firm under her fingertips. A sigh of relief escaped her lips and she began to check over the rest of his body. Her hands rolled over his skin and body checking every inch of it to make sure that nothing had happened. She changed his IV just to be sure Nikola hadn't done anything else to it. Her body was still filled with tension, but she didn't care. She changed everything: his gown, his sheets, his blankets, the machines. Anything that she could think of that might have been tampered with.

The color was slowly returning to his body; his cheeks had a hint of red to them that hadn't been there before. She leaned over the mattress and cupped his face feeling the warmth under her fingers. That was more reassurance than she could ever imagine. She didn't know how long she had been watching him, but she turned her head when she heard her old friend shuffle into the room.

The look she pinned him with was fraught with raging emotions. "You. Stay here." She licked her lips, standing and turning toward the Sasquatch. She rolled up her sleeves and clenched her jaw. "No one sees him except me; you make sure of that. I have something I need to take care." She didn't wait for a response before powering out of the room letting the anger and tension follow in her wake.

She stalked down the hallways, residents gladly stepping out of her path and not bringing any conversation up to her. She was on a rampage. She swung into the lab where she knew he would be, waiting for her. And there he was sitting at the metal desk watching the door, wine glass loosely held between two fingers, halfway full with dark liquid and a smirk on his face.

"I take it Junior lived?" He took a sip and set the glass down.

"What were you thinking, Nikola? How dare you…" She took a deep breath, calming her frayed nerves and toning down her voice yet still letting the vehemence through, "What exactly did you inject him with?"

He stood up and walked over to her, "Just something I've been working on at the request of your late boyfriend. Something I agreed needed to be created, a solution to your little problem of one rogue sex demon."

Her jaw tightened and her teeth rubbed against each other. She must have stood there for a full minute before finally speaking, "Do you know how irresponsible that was? You could have killed him!"

"Junior lived," he leaned forward and grabbed the glass again taking a sip. "Though I wouldn't have minded if he had died."

She huffed, "Get out."

"Sorry?"

"Get out of my house, Nikola. I don't want to see you back for a very long time." His eyes trailed over her body again, making no move to hide the fact that he was enjoying this. He finished his wine and sauntered out of the room.

"You'll want me back before you know it."

She muttered under her breath after she was sure he was gone and out of earshot. "Doubtful." Biding her time she cleaned up the room and set everything back in order for the next time that the man decided to grace her presence again. She needed to debate how she was going to confront John. When either of their tempers raged words would be said that neither could take back and with Jack gone, she really hoped for some change in that aspect of their relationship.

Taking a deep breath and holding it in her lungs for longer than normal she began her journey to her study, where she knew John would still be waiting. She didn't even pause before she spoke. "Why did you do that?" So much for using a nice tone.

"There was no other option."

"The energy being was dead John; you didn't have to take away his abnormality as well."

"He was affecting your judgment." He stood and they were toe to toe.

"My judgment was perfectly sound."

"When he was sleeping!" His timbre rose and the hairs on her arms lifted up in response.

She bit her lip to prevent the retort that was on the tip of her tongue. She couldn't really argue with him since he was technically right. "So what, you wanted me for yourself then? God, have you not gotten it through that thick skull of yours? We will never be together, John. It will not happen in either of our lifetimes. It cannot happen again and I will not allow it."

Pleading eyes greeted her and his voice was soft and gentle. "Helen…"

"No, John. I'll have none of it." He stopped, scuttling for words. "No. I want you out." He went to say her name, she was sure of it. "No. Out." She watched him leave the room before she leaned back into the desk and rested her taut muscles. It was ridiculous that the two of them had planned it.

After a few hours she traversed the hallways back to the infirmary to check on her patient. Will was awake and asking a million and one questions to her old friend who was staunchly sitting in the corner reading a book and ignoring the man. Helen smiled at the interplay between the two, knowing that he had no answers to give her young protégé and that would have been why he was ignoring him so. She dismissed her man servant when a nod of her head and sat on the edge of the bed that Will was occupying.

"How are you feeling?"

Will studied her face for some time before answering. "Achy and tired."

"That's expected."

"Care to fill me in?"

She looked at her hands that were wrapped tightly together in her lap. She didn't even know how to begin. "You were injected with a serum to reverse the effects of the Source Blood virus that you injected yourself with."

Will didn't speak for minutes on end and she was beginning to worry. He wasn't one to go quiet. Finally, words slipped from his lips. "So what does that mean?"

"I'm not exactly sure yet, I need to run some tests to be sure."

Time stretched on and the tension between them started to become permeable. Will reached out and gripped her hands that she hadn't realized were still sitting tightly together. He rubbed his thumb over the smooth skin. "The empathic bond…"

"Is gone, yes."

"Ah." The movement on her hand didn't stop and she found it rather comforting.

"I'm sorry, Will. I didn't know that they had planned it."

"Perhaps it was for the best."

She was taken aback slightly but his statement. "You're certainly taking this in stride."

"What else can I do?" She nodded her agreement and again the silence fell over them. She really should take a sample of his blood and begin to run some tests. Determine exactly what Nikola had done to him. Will was watching her again, her reactions as her thoughts ran rampant in her mind. He could almost hear the words twirling through her brain. He sincerely wished he could because they must have been something terrible from the look on her face. Patting her hand gently to get her attention, he asked, "Where are they now?"

"Gone. They'll be back I'm sure, but for now they're gone."

He nodded in understanding and squeezed her hand before trying to sit up. She moved to help him and he bumped his head into her shoulder. He smiled when she made sure that he laid back gently against the pillows she had propped up and diverted any other accidental disaster on his part. Walking across the room she reached into a drawer for a sterile needle. "Just need some blood."

"Yeah, I thought you might."

She turned and gave him a wry smile. "Sorry, but I need to know exactly what happened."

"So long as it's for a good cause." Pulling up his sleeve he held out his arm and let her draw the liquid from his body.

"I'll be back soon, alright?" He nodded and watched her leave.

He must have dozed off because to him t seemed that no time had passed when she reentered the room with a tablet in hand. "Seems back to normal, although some of the markers have changed I don't think it will mean much for what lays in store for you." She hadn't looked up at him once. His eyes skimmed from her stilettos up her long legs, over her curves and to her lips where they lingered far longer than necessary and was proper.

"So any idea as to when I'll get out of here?"

"Not sooner than a week I'm afraid."

"That long? Really?"

"Will you died twice within the span of a few weeks, I think that's hardly anything to ask from you."

"But…" He sighed and let it drop. "Fine." If he was down here that long it meant she would be coming down more than once a day to check on him.

She checked his vitals quickly and noted them on the tablet. "I've got some work to do, but I'll bring by dinner for you alright?"

"Helen?" He waited until she looked up at him. "We're going to talk, right?"

"Yeah, we'll talk." She went back to her tablet and walked out of the room.


	2. Yellow Lights

He was watching her carefully. She was double checking everything and he was sure she wasn't going to release him. "Two weeks, Magnus." He heard her hum a response but knew she wasn't paying attention. "Two weeks I've been stuck in this room since…well since that thing, but TWO WEEKS!" He huffed a breath for emphasis.

"Yes, I know how long you've been here Will; I believe I've been down here every day, and more than once of each day."

His body started bouncing on the bed when her fingers were on the tablet inputting data. "Two weeks Magnus, it's a long time to be down here… not to mention the two weeks before that."

"Yeah, I know." She continued to input information on her pad and finally looked up at him smiling. "Well, I guess you can leave."

"Yes!" He jumped up and stood stretching his back, even though he had been walking around for days. "When can I go back to work?"

"You've been doing work."

"Yeah… paper work." His eyebrows were raised and his tone annoyingly higher pitched than usual. "When can I do real work?"

A brow was nicely and perfectly arched in response. "Real work? Do you think paper work isn't real work?"

"That's not what I meant and you know it." He pointed a finger at her and grinned at her brilliant responding smile.

"Yes, I know what you meant. There's a pick up that needs to be done at the docks. We can go together if you want."

He nodded vigorously, "When do we leave?"

The watch on her wrist spun so she could look at the time. "In an hour or so." She moved to set the tablet down on the counter and turned back around to find him in front of her, very close.

"That's good," he raised a hand and brought it down her arm to her hands where he squeezed their fingers together. "And it'll give us time to talk on the ride over there."

She wasn't looking at him when she answered. "Yeah, talk." A beat passed before she spoke again. "I have some things to do, Will. I see you in an hour." She hastily made her exit and bounded through the hallways until she reached her room. She bent over the toilet and vomited up her lunch. Her stomach had started spinning half way through that conversation and she hadn't been able to ward it off any longer. Maybe John had been right and she needed to take it easier for longer than she had. Standing back up she threw cold water on her face before drying it. Taking a deep breath she mentally checked all her facilities. She was feeling much better.

Will came into her office just over an hour later. His good mood hadn't been dimmed and he was smiling broadly at anyone who looked at him. "Ready?" He asked cheerfully. She was still subconsciously avoiding him.

"Yeah, just a second." She was no longer dressed in the skirt and heels that she'd worn earlier that day, rather she was wearing a pair of tight fitting jeans, tight shirt and black leather jacket that was left open. Her hair was pulled back into a loose pony and it slid over her shoulder as she leaned against the desk to hit a button on the computer. Blue eyes skimmed across her form and he blushed before turning away when she straightened back up. "Shall we?" She ignored the pink in his cheeks and shuffled forward toward the door.

They walked companionably through the corridors and away from the new sanctuary. Making their way through the caves and sewers that would bring them to the surface Magnus took the lead in leaving. She was talking about the abnormal that they would be picking up and how it rare it was. He was reminded instantly that the docks were hardly anything like the docks of Old City had been. He slipped behind the wheel of the van after she handed him the keys. Words had been running through his mind since they had left her office of how to start the conversation. Finally, taking a deep breath he was ready to begin what he'd been waiting two weeks to have.

When he turned to speak he watched as she opened up her phone and dialed a number resting the tiny machine against her ear. She waited for it to ring and started speaking rapid fire Japanese into the microphone. Sighing, Will looked back at the road and drove. So much for having the conversation he'd been planning on. If he didn't know better he'd think she'd done it on purpose, but it was rare that she left the Sanctuary these days and it wasn't like she could get cell service down there. She talked through the entire drive to three different people. They arrived where the helicopter was to land. He hadn't been to "the docks" since the new sanctuary had been built, but he hadn't realized just how different they were.

There was a large building with six hallways that jutted out from the center where he knew a large room was located. It was where they did initial intake of the abnormals now. He parked the van after she directed him where to go. "Apparently it arrived early. It's already left and the intake has been done. We just need to retrieve, pack up and go." Will nodded and got out of the van opening the back up so it would make for an easier transition. He followed her into the building and blinked his eyes when the door shut behind him. The entire building was dark. He bumped into her, his chest colliding with her back.

Helen didn't move. Will stopped and waited until she decided what to do next. Pulling out a flashlight and a gun from somewhere he couldn't see she shined the light down the hallway. "Stay close, Will." She walked silently, her boots making barely any noise as they traversed down the corridor. She turned the corner and came face to face with a frantic scientist who was spouting words in Spanish so fast that he couldn't understand any of what she was saying. Magnus calmed the woman down and slowly got her tell them what was going on.

Will stopped listening about half way through and started wandering around the central room. It was well equipped with just about everything that they needed. Magnus appeared over his shoulder and gave him a wan smile that he could barely make out by the emergency lighting. "It's the generator. And apparently the backup isn't working. I'm going to take a look at it, but I might need to send Henry out here later. Do you mind loading up our guest?"

He nodded his head and watched as she left and went outside. The scientist spoke much more slowly to him which he was grateful for. She led him to where the abnormal was being kept. An enclosed box with a dark sheet covering it was sitting in one of the rooms down one of the corridors. He was lost, to be honest and had no idea how to get back to the van. The woman explained that the covering was because this abnormal didn't do well with light. He smirked and smiled to himself thinking that it was a perfect abnormal to transport during the day.

Loading the box into the van wasn't as hard as he thought it might have been. It fit nicely into the back. The woman had disappeared without offering to help so he was thankful that he'd had enough energy to get the thing into the vehicle. Maybe going on a mission so soon after being released from the infirmary hadn't been the best idea. Even though it wasn't a true mission, it was definitely physically exerting. He walked around the building until he saw Magnus playing with a machine and a streak of grease smeared on her cheek. He grinned and rubbed it off.

"Thanks." She muttered before turning back. "Something chewed through a wire. I replaced it, just putting everything back together before we leave." She slipped a few wires back in place and then the cover, securing it tightly. Leaning down and sliding her hand along the machine she flicked a switch and watched it come to life. "That should do it for now. I'll give you the project of how to remedy this for the future." She stood and swayed almost falling back down to the ground. Will reached out and grasped her arms holding her upright.

It took a few seconds for her head to stop spinning and for her legs to stop feeling like jello. She straightened and stepped out of his grasp even though she wasn't feeling completely herself. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, wasn't feeling too good earlier, I think it might have been lunch."

He watched the color slowly seep back into her face and her collect her tools moving away. He let her finish up in silence, talk to the scientist one more time and then drove home. Silence was how that drive went. Silence with the few rummaging's of a waking abnormal in the back was all that was heard. They finished putting the abnormal in his new habitat and were done within an hour. The color had drained from her face about halfway through and Will was beginning to worry once again. She brushed him off and walked away. Will let out a sigh of relief when he watched her turn toward the infirmary and not towards her office.


	3. Yellow Babies

She passed by their new media room that Henry had set up and watched as he and Will were grossly engaged in some sort of game that involved racing cars at high speeds around courses. Henry was obviously winning. She smirked, tapped the door with her hand quietly and left them to it. With the mission she was sending Will on they wouldn't have much time for that anyway. She could give them an hour before the staff meeting. Magnus gave Will a break after their last mission and only let him do paper work for an entire week. Retrieving the abnormal had taken more out of him than he probably wanted to admit, but she felt he was up to this one. Kate would be going with him and she would no doubt be watching him carefully.

The woman was waiting in her office when she arrived. Magnus smiled, "Kate? What can I do for you?"

The young woman bit her lip and was bouncing on her toes. She didn't answer and started to pace back and forth, her eyes glancing every once in a while at her boss. Magnus let the Indian walk the nervous energy and patiently passed the time observing her carefully. She had lost weight, but the leanness in her body certainly didn't look emaciating. She started and stopped multiple times before blurting out, "We decided to sort of…combine the two ceremonies." Helen smiled at the worries she was exhibiting.

"Sounds like an interesting idea." She waited again for Kate to begin speaking. She obviously had a question that she wanted to ask and Magnus had a pretty fair idea of what exactly it was.

Kate was still pacing back and forth, her teeth working her lip so hard that Magnus feared she would break skin. Not meaning to be rude, Magnus flipped her wrist to look at her watch checking the time. The movement made Kate stop. "I'm sorry, you're busy. I should have made sure you had time before barging in here."

The sigh escaped her lips. "I'm always here for you Kate, but what is it that I can do?"

"I…" She took a long and deep breath, holding it in her lungs for a second before releasing. "I wanted to know if you would be at the ceremony with me? If you would be my madre for the Herusan part and help me the day before with my part."

Helen grinned and stayed where she was. "I would be honored Kate, thank you."

She put her hands in her back pocket having finally stopped moving and looked at Magnus. She was eyeing her incredulously and started to bounce on her toes again. "I'll tell you more about what I'll need you to do when we figure out more of the specifics."

"I will be at your disposal for those two days. I promise." Kate was smiling broadly then and Magnus couldn't help but mimic it.

"Thank you so much Doc. I just didn't…well with Garris being…and my mom…I didn't…"

"I know. I understand."

A huge breath was released that Kate hadn't known she was holding. "Thanks again, Doc. You're a life saver, really."

"Yeah, for now at least." She gave a cheeky smile. "Oh, and about that weapons inventory?"

"Um…" Kate was once again gnawing on her lip. "Yeah." She grinned, thumbed toward the door and started backing out of the room. "Getting on that."

"Don't be late to the meeting."

"Wouldn't dream of it." With that she left before Magnus could throw something else on her plate. Helen smiled to herself a moment after Kate departed and turned back to her desk determined to get some work done.

She was interrupted far sooner than she would have liked or expected when Will came into her office. She glanced at the clock on her monitor and noted he was only ten minutes early. "Hey Will."

"Helen." She looked up at him sharply. That was the first time he had used her first name since Nikola had injected him with the serum. He was standing on his toes, hands in pockets and rolling back to his heels. That usually meant he was debating something. She rested back against her chair and folded her hands in front of her.

Minutes ticked by and she finally stood and walked around the desk to where he was standing. She desperately wanted to reach up and cup his cheek but she resisted. "What is it Will?" There was only a beat before he responded.

He looked up, his neck slowly sliding forward. He took a step towards her and drew in a deep breath of air. Their lips touched. He sighed and she tensed. He kept their bodies close together, their mouths touching for what seemed like ages to her.

Finally he pulled back. She refused to look at him. Will ran his fingers up her arms to her neck and started to lean in again. Her head jerked up and she looked at him muttering on a breath, "Stop it, Will." Her eyes dropped back to the floor.

He was still cupping her cheek. "Why?"

"I can't do this."

"Because I'm not an abnormal anymore. That's why."

She made eye contact then, her face serious and honest. "No, Will. Not because of that at all."

"I know when you're lying, Magnus. So just stop it."

"Will." Her timbre rose and she was forceful in her words. He turned back to her the tension in the room taut and anxiety ridden. Just then Henry came in through the doors and stopped cold in his tracks.

"Maybe I'll just…"

Helen glanced at him. "No, it's quite alright, Henry." She turned back to Will and grasped his hand squeezing his fingers gently. "We'll discuss this later, alright?" She waited for his nod of affirmation before turning back to Henry. "Are the others coming?"

"Yeah should be right up."

"Good." She reached for her notepad to begin their meeting.

More than an hour had passed and they were almost done with everything when she brought it up. "Kate, there's a mission I'd like you to go on."

"…Ok…What is it?"

"There's a legend about a fish in the northern Rockies that has powers to control the weather. Not on a large or grand scale, but just within the specific location that it resides in. I'd like you to go find it."

"The northern Rockies."

"Yes."

"In October."

"Yes."

"Do you realize how cold it's going to be?"

"Yes."

"Do you realize that there's nothing out there?"

"Yes."

"Do you—"

"Kate. I know what I'm asking you. I'd also like you to take Will with you." The young woman grimaced. Magnus could see the retort on the tip of Kate's tongue and silenced her with a look. "You leave tonight." She saw Will's eyes as they became crestfallen. It was the only reaction to her request that she found. Kate grumbled but Magnus didn't look away from Will. "Is that it? Anyone have anything to add?" When she got no responses she went on. "Good, we're done then."

Everyone filed out of the room, but Will took his time. When most everyone was gone she quietly spoke to him. "We will talk about this. I promise. When you get back." He nodded and when she was sure that everyone else had left she moved in and pressed her lips delicately to his cheek. "I promise." She watched him go and went back to work. She had already changed her name on the plane ticket to Kate's so all she had to do was paperwork and to check in on her residents.

Will was dying for a beer. He was thirsty, tired, stiff and just plain grumpy. Kate was never a fun person to travel with and he'd been stuck with her for over twelve hours while they traveled to the northern Rockies. The plane had been small and the ride had been rough. They hadn't even served booze on it. All in all, he was very annoyed.

Kate was still complaining. Dragging her two bags most of which held supplies that they would need not clothes as they were only planning for a three to four day trip. Will was dragging along is own two bags. It was close to midnight and when he found the only restaurant in the tiny-ass little airport he was dismayed to find that he had closed nearly four hours earlier. "Damn it!" He cursed and turned to her. "All I wanted was a beer."

"Sounds nice. Let's get to the hotel and see if we can find a bar nearby." She tried to get the car at the rental booth, but apparently Magnus had put it in his name. With the foul mood he was in she was scared to let him loose on the poor man at the desk. Luckily he had restrained from yelling when the man had lost the keys to the truck they were supposed to get. He offered a small SUV in return which Will gladly took. They loaded their suitcases in and he drove to the hotel.

They had to wait a whole fifteen minutes before getting checked in because they lady at the desk was ancient and moved like a slug. She was asking all sorts of questions, but only to him. She was asking about where he was from and why he was there. She didn't even look at Kate until she handed him the keys. "Be careful with the Injun, there. It's not good to mix blood you know."

Kate was so taken aback that she didn't even know what to say. Will, however, had his wits about him. "Excuse me, but that is highly inappropriate for you to say. I love my wife and I would have it no other way. And our yellow babies and more beautiful than any white baby could be." He grabbed Kate by the elbow and led her down the hallway to their room.

Once inside she sat heavily on the bed closest to the tv and looked at him. "Thanks Will."

"Don't mention it."


	4. Hazy Yellow

Will drove the two of them up through a very windy path halfway to the crest of the mountain. Kate had plugged in her ipod and blasted the music as loud as the car stereo would go. With had just about had enough, but he reminded himself that they would be parking and hiking the rest of the way to the location and he wouldn't have to deal with her music for four glorious days. They finally reached the reservoir where parking was and he turned off the engine.

Kate groaned. "I wanted to finish that song."

"It's not going anywhere." He opened his door and slammed it shut going to the rear of the vehicle. He pulled out their supplies and their backpacks shoving his onto his back and hers into her unaware hands. She glared and dropped it to the ground.

"Real mature Will."

"Just get moving; neither of us wants to be here."

She kept her mouth shut and banged the back of the SUV closed. She tugged on the straps of the pack and started walking. Will diligently followed knowing she knew where they were going. She had, after all, studied the map until the wee hours of the morning. They didn't talk for the first hour and the pace that she had set was grueling.

He was huffing and puffing, his muscles yelling at him loudly before he finally spoke up. "Kate, I need a break." She snorted but stopped and let him sit on a rock that he found. He took out his water bottle and gulped down the pure and satisfying liquid. It was cooling his dry and scratchy throat. Granted he'd been out of the infirmary for three weeks, and working out to build his strength back up but this was far more exercise than he thought he would have been doing in the next few weeks. Magnus had been keeping a short leash and very close eye on him. He set the bottle down and shrugged out of the backpack giving his muscles a break. "How are the wedding plans coming?"

"Fine."

His eyebrows rose and he looked over at her. She was being short and sharp with him. "…Ok…care to elaborate?"

"Garris wants a traditional Herusan bonding ceremony."

"And?"

"And I want a dress. A traditional Indian dress and I want my wedding, the way I dreamed it. It's just so damn frustrating. Like does he not realized how much I've compromised for him already? If Magnus hadn't created this place, if that hadn't happened…I'd be living in Hollow Earth and never really seeing my family again." She paused in her rant and looked at him with sad eyes. "We should have just eloped." There was a huge grin on her face and she moved to sit next to Will. "It doesn't matter right? I'm getting married, that's all that matters." Her hands were resting on the rock by each of her thighs and she was leaning back and forth with a small smirk on her face. "I should be happy that I found him," her lip slipped between her teeth and she gnawed a bit before continuing, "and that it worked out right?"

Will grinned and bumped his shoulder into hers successfully throwing off her momentum. "I'm glad that you're happy."

Bouncing back into him she suddenly pulled back. "What about Abby?"

Air kept piling into his lungs and the look on his face was strained. "We had a talk."

"And?"

"And we decided not to see each other anymore. With going underground and being so far away it's become very difficult to see each other. She can't work here, Magnus won't let her and let us be together and she loves her job at the FBI. And I would never dream of leaving Magnus."

"Of leaving Magnus? Jeeze Will, what about me?" She punched him lightly in the arm and grinned. There was a pause in the conversation, it was reserved and thoughtful. The mood changed from joking and joyful to solemn and contemplative. "You holding up alright?"

"Yeah, just miss her sometimes ya know?"

"Yeah." Kate drew in a deep breath this time, looking around the woods at the tall pine trees and moist dirt beneath her boots. She kicked a rock across the path and watched it settle. "Well ready to keep going?"

"Sure." He stood, grabbed his bag and they started up the mountain again.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Magnus was sitting calmly in her office finishing up a conversation with Declan when there was a gentle knock on her door. Looking up she saw the brunette smiling in at her. Helen stood and moved to the door, "Erika, so good to see you again."

"I'm sorry to interrupt but I only just arrived and wanted to see if I could have a word with you."

"Of course." Magnus led her into the room and looked at Declan. He nodded and smiled as he saw the slightly protruding belly of the HAP. "Dinner then?"

"See you then." He stood and walked out of the room with a tablet and moved to his own office.

She sat with the young woman down on the couch that was facing the window. She was still holding her hand. "How is everything?"

"It's great, since the procedure, no unnecessary changes. But that's part of why I wanted to talk to you."

"Oh?"

"I haven't talked to Henry about this. If fact I haven't even seen him yet." She glanced at the door to make sure her wayward boyfriend wasn't wandering in. "I was wondering about something."

"Go on…" Magnus reached over to the side table and grabbed her ever present tea pot. She poured two cups and was in heaven to have a Brit to share real tea with. The young woman gladly took a sip and let her cheeks blush. Magnus caught it but didn't comment.

"It's just that… well you said I'm going to be like this for around 22 months right?"

"Give or take, yes."

Erika took another deep breath. "Then I might foresee a problem." She set the cup down and rested back against the cushions. Her palm rubbed circles on her stomach. "There's a certain aspect to pregnancy that I did not anticipate."

Magnus didn't move; she had a feeling that she knew where this conversation was going and she really did not want it to go there. Taking a tactful alternative she spoke, "Is there something wrong?"

"No, no, nothing wrong at all. Well nothing that is going to harm the baby." Again her hand was moving along her slightly protruding belly. "I've just been feeling very frustrated lately, with Henry that is."

"Emotions do tend to run high when pregnant."

"Yes, yes. This is… different though. I'm feeling very sexually frustrated." Magnus couldn't help the wince that graced her face. She closed her eyes and let out a sigh. "It's just that nothing Henry does seems to be enough and, well frankly, it was so much better before when I could change and I was wondering if there was anything you could do to make it so I could." Erika's eyes grew big and soft, her brow creasing with hope and her eyes watering. "Honestly, if I don't get some relief I can't imagine what I'll do. It's just so… frustrating."

Magnus licked her lips and slowly took a sip of her own tea after drawing in and releasing a long breath. "I know what it is you mean. Believe me, with Ashley… I do understand where you are coming from." She leaned forward then, looking directly into the young woman's eyes. "There is nothing I can do. You happing while pregnant would harm the child and I know you don't want to do that."

The young brunette leaned forward eagerly. "Nothing at all?"

"Your hormones may still be disjointed because of the medication you were taking before, I can run a few tests and see if there's anything I can give you to help with that but I fear it might only prolong your pregnancy further."

"Ah…" Erika sat back again. "We wouldn't want that. Waiting this long is hard enough as it is." There was a long pause while Magnus continued to drink her tea and try to get the mental image out of her mind. "Do you know when you'll be able to tell us what we're having?"

"Ah, my guess is that it'll be around month ten, so soon. We can check tomorrow afternoon and see if there is anything distinctive if you would like. But I thought you and Henry didn't want to know."

"I know, but I'm so curious." She smiled. "I'll speak with him about it."

Magnus set her cup down when she heard Henry coming down the hallway. "Speaking of Henry…" She turned just as he entered the room.

The man was buried nose deep in his tablet and almost stumbled over the rug that he was still getting used to being in her office. He finally looked up and saw the two of them. His face went from confusion to joy to sudden concern. "Erika, what are you doing here?"

"We were just catching up, Henry." Magnus spoke, saving Erika from an explanation. "I was just checking on her and the little one." The smile won Henry over and he shuffled to the women and placed a kiss to the lips of his girlfriend.

He turned suddenly to Magnus. "Is everything all right? I mean, nothing's wrong is it?"

"No Henry, just checking in on everything. I'm going to head to the lab." She turned to Erika. "I trust you'll find me if you need anything." The woman nodded and she slowly made her way from the room.


	5. Splashing Yellow

Magnus was sitting at her desk in the lab switching slides and humming a soft tune to nothing but her own ears. There was nothing immediately wrong, she had made her rounds, Henry had requested the day off with Erika and she was left alone in this wing of the Sanctuary. There was nothing she could have preferred more. Everything was quiet and peaceful. Moments like this were rare and she reveled in them. Since combining all the sanctuaries into one she had much more time on her hands for research and the likes. She hadn't had this much time to do anything since she was a student at Oxford. She grinned again and looked into the light checking the cell sample.

She smiled when she heard his tell-tale shuffle and turned just as he reached her door. "Hello Henry, I thought you were with Erika today."

"I was, she had an idea about a new security system for the calderas and I can't pry her away from the computers."

Magnus chuckled, "Seems to run in the family, I've had that happen with you on several occasions." She turned back to her slide and looked through the eyepiece again.

"Yeah," he blushed. She could hear it in his voice. "Will called. He and Kate made it to the top of the mountain but he says there isn't much service so he probably won't call again."

"Is everything going decently then?"

"Yeah, they made it just as night fell and set up camp. He called before Kate woke up but they were going to look around the rivers and lakes that they found nearby. He also said that it looked like a nasty storm was brewing so they didn't know how much time they'd have to look."

"Thank you, I'm sure they'll be fine." She turned her head and gave him a comforting smile. Henry was such a worrier it was really sweet of him actually. "Are they still planning on being back within the week?"

"Yeah, Will said something about killing Kate if he was stuck out there with her for longer… something about going all caveman on her." He grinned and she gave him a serious glance. "I dunno, it kept cutting in and out."

"Ah." She nodded her head once and looked back into the microscope. She listened to him switch his weight from one foot to the other and the sighs as they left his lips. She finally turned and grinned, her cheeks rising, eyes squinting and brow creasing. "Would you like to wait in her until she's done?"

"Only if you don't mind."

She shook her head and pulled out another stool. "Sit Henry, talk. It's been awhile since we've had time."

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Will doused the fire and watched as Kate, very slowly, lifted her pack so they could start their day. She was not good at starting without at least three cups of coffee and he sincerely wanted to hoard the coffee so he only made enough for each of them to have one. She was also walking at a much more reserved pace than the previous day. If he remembered correctly, the first pond that they were going to check out was only a mile from their camp. It was a glacial runoff so he doubted anything would be in it, but she and thus Magnus had insisted that they check it out.

They made it to the first pond, if it could be called that, within twenty minutes. The ground had been uneven and Kate had slipped in some bear scat falling on her bum. Will had stifled a laugh and helped her to stand before moving on ahead. The first "pond" seemed to be useless. There were no live animals living in the water, which he figured. There was also not a stream leading to or from it, which he also figured. So he was right and he was gloating and enjoying that fact throughout their walk to the next larger pond which could easily be classified as a lake.

This watering hole was far larger than the last one. Probably a hundred times so, but the terrain to it had been steep and long. It had taken them over three hours to reach it and they were standing high on a ridge looking down at the water. At least with this one he could imagine there would be some life in it. He sighed and took a drink of water before deciding which way would be the best way down. Kate, however, had other plans and started down the ridge without him. She made it about half way sidestepping it before she lost her footing and began to tumble head over heels. He shouted her name, not that it would help any and began on a torrent down after her.

He heard her splash into the water before he reached her, or even looked up from his rapidly moving feet. She was completely drenched and not moving. The last few steps sent him into the icy cold water up to mid-calf so that he could pull her out. Luckily she had landed face up. He dragged her by her under arms until they reached the embankment. Carefully brushing the hair out of her face he watched her breathing. Her eyes were still closed and she wasn't moving. He slipped the backpack from her body and rested her head even with the ground. She'd probably be angry with him for getting mud in her hair but she'd live.

Moving his hands over her body he checked for broken bones. He found none. Tapping the side of her face he tried to wake her. "Kate." He said her name three or four more times before he realized that he was whispering. Speaking louder he tapped a little harder. "Kate, wake up." Her head turned to the side and he smiled seeing her eyes flutter. "Hey there sleepy head. When I said I wanted to find something living in this pond, I didn't mean you."

She groaned. "My head hurts."

"That's all that hurts?"

When she didn't answer he took up an interest with her hair brushing the wet strands from side to side and using nimble fingers to look for any bumps. He didn't find anything except a sticky spot at the top of her neck and bottom of her skull. He didn't say anything about it, "Turn on your side Kate." He slowly helped her to move and kept her as straight as possible. He used his thumbs and found only blood and a small cut. He turned her back over and tapped her cheek until she looked up at him. "Hey there brown eyed girl." That got a wan smile that he was looking for. "How you doing?"

"Head hurts." She winced at the light from the sun overhead and tried to turn away from it. The movement hurt her head even more so she stopped. "What happened?"

"You had a bit of a tumble. I'm gonna try and get you back to camp ok?" She nodded and he watched as she lost what color she had gotten back in her cheeks again. "Kate?" She didn't move; she didn't even give warning. The vomit emerged from her lips like a fountain. Will jumped back in reaction before scrunching his nose and leaning forward to turn her head to the side. "Damn it, Kate. Really? You just had to go fall in the lake didn't you?"

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Henry had disappeared hours earlier to check and see if Erika had finished her work. Magnus had completed more than she thought she would have, perhaps having a protégé out of the house meant less distractions. She smiled and changed her line of thought. She was supposed to be dining with Declan again that night. He had a special project that he was working on and wanted some more input from her and if it involved a meal she would never decline spending time with the man. She had changed out of her lab coat and into something far more suitable for the meal she would be sharing. He had said something about a picnic and so she'd chosen jeans and a light sweater for the occasion.

Declan was already waiting for her up ahead when she walked outside. She waved at him when they made eye contact and slowly sauntered forward. He'd chosen a good spot; he was just under the falls and a large tree that would offer them some shelter from the wandering spray. It was the perfect night for a picnic, Declan had chosen well. She had made it halfway to their rendezvous point when she heard her name being called. She turned to see Henry racing toward her. "Doc! So glad I found you, something's wrong. I need you to come quick. It's Erika."

"Slow down, Henry. What's going on?"

"I dunno, she told me to come get you." He was biting his lip and wringing his hands tightly together. Breathing heavily he tried hard to hold his body still but the nerves and worry were coming off him in waves and ripples like a giant rock had been thrown into a peaceful, calmed water. "She said something about a lot of pain and bleeding."

"Alright, I'm coming." She turned and glanced at the man behind her sending a silent message of explanation and apology before taking off back toward the Sanctuary with Henry at a rapid walking pace.


	6. Yellow Sunset

Will was slowly dragging the wet body up to the top of the ridge that she had toppled down. She might have been small but water certainly added a lot of weight. He was on his knees and pulled with his arms and shoulders about a foot each time before readjusting his body. He was grunting and breathing heavily by the time he reached halfway. Kate coughed when he started to pull her again and he stopped suddenly looking down.

"You ok?"

"Maybe you should climb the rest of the way and try to call Magnus."

He looked up to the top of the ridge and back down at her. "I'm scared you'll slide down to the bottom again."

That got her to chuckle and immediately started her coughing again. Once the racking of her shoulders stopped she wiggled carefully and pulled her phone from her pocket. "Try it here, see if you get service."

Will took the precarious phone out of her hands and turned it over to see the front. "It's a bit waterlogged." He shook it lightly and watched as the water droplets fell from it. He hit the button and miraculously it turned on. Sliding the lock he dialed Magnus and watched as it worked hard to connect the call. Finally he heard it ring. Even the sound was waterlogged if he could describe it. It cut in and out and was fuzzy and glurpy.

"Will? Will, you there?" He finally heard her voice, though it was seconds after the ringing had stopped.

"Magnus! Thank God, we need help, Kate's hurt." But there was silence in response.

"Will?" She finally spoke again. "If you're talking I can't hear you at all." She obviously waited another second before hanging up.

Will sighed and shrugged shoving the phone into his pocket and wrapping his arms under Kate again to drag her further up to the ridge.

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Magnus hung up the phone and continued on with Henry shrugging as she went. If it was that emergent he would call back. It was probably an accidental call as it was anyway. She marched into Henry's room and saw Erika lying on the bed. She sat on the mattress and watched the pain filter over her face. She waited a second. "Where is it?"

Erika didn't speak, she grasped Helen's hand and pressed it to her abdomen, low and followed it with the pain as it shot up her body. She was groaning and clenching her eyes shut. Henry stayed back, away from the two women scared that he would do something wrong.

Magnus finally turned to him, "Henry, would you get me a chair. We need to get her to the infirmary." He nodded and raced out of the room. "Erika, is it sharp?" She nodded. "All the time or only part of the time?"

"Most of it."

"When did it start?"

"A few hours ago."

"Is this the first time this has happened?"

"No. I had some cramping the other month." She shut her jaw tight and worked through another shot of pain as it worked its way through her body. "But it went away with an hour. This is worse."

"Scale of one to ten."

"Oh, nine, definitely nine."

"Ok," Magnus ran a hand over her cheek and her hair. "Just keep calm, everything's going to be fine. We'll work this out." Erika nodded and tensed as more pain slipped through her body. Magnus rubbed circles on her back and up and down her arms trying to ease the stress in her body. Finally Henry arrived with the chair. Slowly they help the young woman get into it and moved down to the infirmary.

Helen had her sit on an exam table and moved to grab a gown. "Henry, will you help her get dressed?" He nodded and moved in to help his girlfriend. "Also, I need a sample." She held out a pee cup and smiled. Afterwards, Helen moved to the counter and grabbed some supplies, a few needles and vials for blood. She moved out of the room quickly and came back with an ultrasound machine. Erika was fully changed by the time Magnus had everything set up and had a blanket covering her legs. "Henry said you were bleeding?"

"Yeah."

"When did that start?" She guided Erika's feet into the stirrups and sharply told Henry with her eyes to either get out or stay by Erika's head. He did as he was told. "Slide down." She pulled on a glove and watched as Erika's bum hit the edge of the table.

"A few days ago, it was just light. Got heavier this morning." She winced as another lash of pain knocked around her body.

"Ok, I'm just going to insert some fingers alright?" Erika nodded. "There's lubricant so you should only feel some pressure." Again the woman nodded and Magnus waited a second before gliding a finger just on her inner thigh.

Erika jumped like someone had just attacked her. "I'm fine, just wasn't expecting it. Oddly enough."

Magnus continued and slipped one finger in and then two. She moved them around feeling the uterus and made sure that everything seemed alright. When she pulled her fingers out and looked there was blood on the latex. "Have you had to pee a lot lately? Burning at all?"

"Nope."

Pulling the latex from her hand she tossed it on the tray table she had set up. "Ok, rest back." Erika slid back until she was fully on the exam table and rested her head against the pillow. She reached for and grasped Henry's hand lightly. Magnus pulled up the blanket and the gown making space on her belly. "Sorry, it's going to be a bit cold, it didn't have time to warm." She squeezed a small amount of the jelly onto her stomach and slipped the wand into it.

Carefully she moved it around to get a clear and good image of the fetus. She turned the monitor when she realized Erika and Henry were straining their necks to see it. "Here's the head." She pointed to the screen and watched Henry's face light up. It was the first time he had been around for an ultrasound and so it was the first time he saw the baby move. Erika looked delighted before another wave took over her features. Magnus moved the wand some more. "Do you want to know the sex?"

"No."

"Yes."

The couple grinned at each other and Henry raised his eyebrows down at her. "If you want to, we can."

Erika turned to Magnus and nodded. "Yes, please."

The wand moved slightly and Magnus grinned. She pointed to the screen again and saw Henry's face scrunch in concentration. "A boy?"

"Yup. A little baby boy HAP." She grinned and watched as his face lit up and he leaned down to kiss Erika. She moved the wand some more, printing some of the pictures so that they would have them. "Everything looks healthy thus far. I'm going to take some blood, check your hormone levels." Magnus gave an extra nod to Erika so she knew that a particular test would be included. "And look at the urine sample. I'll know more then, alright?"

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"Will," she breathed heavily. The sun was starting to go down and she was shivering so hard that it hurt him to look at her do it. "Will, you have to stop." They'd reached the top of the ridge finally after more than an hour of him dragging her up it. He hadn't known that it was that steep when he'd gone down it. She was now leaning against the trunk of a tree, her head lolled to one side while she tried to keep awake.

"No sleeping on me Kate." He tapped her cheek and tipped some water into her lips. He had reached for his own pack that he had dropped earlier and pulled out his working cell phone. Begrudgingly, he had no service, not even roaming. "This is crazy." He stood and walked around a bit trying to find even half a bar. But he gave up and moved back to Kate when he saw her doze off for a second. "No sleeping, sleeping beauty." He tapped her cheek again and she perked up a bit.

"I'm not sleeping."

"Nope, you were just studiously looking at the back of your eyelids. Did you get something raunchy tattooed back there or something?" She grinned and started coughing. "Ok, ok, calm down." He cooed lightly. He pulled her forward and started to strip her of the wet jacket. She didn't protest until he started to remove her shirt. "Come on, Katie. I'm not doing this for me; you're going to freeze to death if we don't take it off." She grumbled but let him take it off. He slipped his own jacket off and wrapped her tightly in it. "There, isn't that better?" She hummed and closed her eyes. "Ok, we're going to try this a new way." He hefted his pack onto his shoulders and leaned down to her. "Arms up, snow white." She gave him a funny look but complied.

He almost fell over the first time he tried to stand up and dropped her legs so he could grasp the tree to prevent himself from landing on top of her. "Will?"

"I'm good, just gonna try it again." He reached down and used his knees this time to stand. They were going to make it back to the camp site by dawn, he was sure of it.

She was breathing heavily, but her breath was coming in deep, wet rasps. "Will?" She felt the cold niggling at her nose. "What is that?"

"What is what?" He was walking as fast as he could. He would have loved to leave the pack, but it held a lot of their supplies so they would need it.

"The cold stuff."

He stopped suddenly and looked a head. "Uh…I think it's snow."

"Wonderful, now I really do get to be snow white."


	7. Yellow Snow

They finally made it back to the camp, after hours and hours of Will walking with her in his arms and many more breaks than he would care to admit. She managed to stay awake the majority of the time. The three hour trip out there turned into a seven or eight hour trip back. He hadn't known he could ever be that tired or weary. He set her inside the tent and told her, firmly, to change. He started up the fire and had it flaming in a matter of minutes, thanks to the fire starter Kate had insisted on bringing. Boiling water he began to make soup from their MRE's that she had also insisted on packing.

"Will?"

He heard her soft call and popped his head into the tent. "Yeah?"

"I can't get my pants off."

He blinked his eyes blearily at her. "Um… ok?"

"Will, I need you to help." The last word came off on a cough, her lungs racking and her chest convulsing from the movement. He stumbled in, his foot catching on the lip of the entrance and he face-planted down next to her onto his own sleeping bag. He didn't wait until she was done coughing before he started to pull at her wet jeans. Denim was probably the most difficult material to get off when wet so he wasn't surprised that she was having a hard time.

He twisted her hips and she cried out suddenly. He stopped, his hands flying into the air in a defensive manner. "What? What I'd do?"

She took slow calming breaths trying to avoid another coughing fit. "I think…" She breathed and started again. "I think I have some broken ribs, or a hip. I don't know. It hurt."

"Ok, I'll try to be more careful." He started on her pants again that were down to her thighs. He reached her ankles and then realized that he hadn't taken her boots off. Or that she hadn't. Slowly he began to untie the laces and pulled them off one by one. "You got it from here?"

"Yeah, I think so. Thanks." She moved slightly then stopped. Her eyes flashed to him and glared. "Are you leaving?"

"Um… yeah, sorry." He moved back out of the tent, zipping it mostly shut. He turned to the fire and stirred the now boiling soup. He pulled the pot off and left it on the side of the fire ring that they had made the night before. He called back over. "Kate! You dressed yet?"

"Yeah," came the soft reply. He moved over to the tent and gripped the bottom of it.

"I'm gonna pull you closer to the fire."

"Ok, but not too close." She started coughing again, but he didn't wait this time. He ripped his hands back and the tent slid with the force of it closer to the burning flame. He got up and turned it so that it was side long against it. That should keep her warmer. He moved around and grabbed the pot that was still hot and poured the liquid into the metal cups they had. He brought them into the tent and sat with her while they sip in the warmth.

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Magnus was done leaning over slides. She was done looking at test results. She had an answer and it was amazingly simple. She moved back into the infirmary room where Erika and Henry were waiting. "You love," she glanced at the woman, "have a UTI. Simple as that."

"That's it?"

"That's it." The young woman smiled and then grimaced slightly. Magnus handed her a small container of antibiotics. "Four times a day, with food. One at each meal and one before bed. Ten days. You should start to feel better soon."

"That's it? Really, that's all it was?"

"Well quite a bad one, I'm afraid. I'll urge you to pay more attention next time, but yes, that's all it was. I want you to rest for the next few days. Little movement, I'm sure Henry will see to that. No work." She scolded. "And if you're not feeling better by then, I'll have another look at you. So nothing," she reemphasized, "for three days. Understood?" Both of them nodded and Magnus looked at them a moment longer. "Alright, well I'm done. You can get dressed and then to bed for you." She pointed at Erika one last time before slipping off her lab coat and heading for the door.

Slowly she made her way to the kitchens; she was starved that was for sure. After missing her meal with Declan, what else could she expect? She walked into the room to see her old friend at the stove top cooking something. She wrinkled her nose, but straightened it out before he could see.  
"Cod, I thought you reserved that for breakfast?"

"Had a craving."

"Ah." She slipped open the fridge and looked around at the containers that were neatly stacked. She stood back with a hand on her hip and scanned over the items. She finally turned to him. "Do we have any ice cream?"

"Uh… yeah, I think Will has some mint chocolate chip." He grunted toward the secondary freezer that he kept. Magnus smiled and moved over lifting the door to find said ice cream resting on top.

She grinned and turned to her old friend. "Our secret?"

"Always." He moved back to cooking his fish. She took out a bowl and scooped two rather large chunks into it. Taking another moment to think she placed two more scoops of ice cream into the shiny porcelain bowl and put away the box. She took her precious dinner and moved back to her office. When she reached the room, Declan was sitting in his usual chair across from her desk reading over some paper work.

"Hello Declan." She sat and bit into some of the ice cream savoring the flavor as it melted on her tongue. "Sorry about earlier," she continued before taking another bite. "Bit of an emergency, all is resolved."

"That's alright. I know how it goes." He looked her over and smiled. "Late night snack?"

She hummed, "Dinner actually."

"I still have some of the picnic if you like. It's in the kitchens."

Her eyes crinkled at the corners, "Thank you, I might just have some of that later. So, the school."

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Will was lying on Kate's side trying to keep her as warm as possible throughout the night. He was so worried that he was having his own problems sleeping. He could see her shivering through the sleeping bag that she was tucked into. It must have taken him hours before he finally spoke. They both knew the other wasn't sleeping. "Kate." She didn't respond. He spoke louder, "Kate, I know you're awake."

"What do you want?" She couldn't help the rattling in her teeth.

"Twist your sleeping bag."

"What?"

"Twist it so the zipper is over your front." He waited until she started moving and then unzipped his own bag. When she was done rustling around he unzipped her and watched her not even flinch at the cold air. He laid his bag on top of her and moved down to her feet where he started to zip them together. It took his fingers so many tries to get them to work that he wasn't sure he would actually get the edges together and he kept thinking that perhaps this is had been a horrible idea.

Finally he got them started and he moved up following the zip. He had both sides completely done. Shivering violently once himself he started to slide into the sleeping bags. "What are you doing?"

"Keeping you warm, popsicle." He moved his arms over her stomach and pressed his front into her side. His hands didn't stop moving on her until she fell asleep and he felt heat starting to slowly seep back into her body. Finally he let his eyes drift shut.

The sun woke him far too soon. She was still sleeping soundly and really didn't want to wake her. The coughing had gotten worse that night. He slid out of the sleeping bag and made his way to the entrance of the tent. Slipping on his shoes he moved out and stepped into a good foot and a half of snow. "What the hell?" He moved around and eventually found where the fire pit was. He cleared the white fluff away and started the flames. He was doing a dance by the time the wood lit and decided next time he would take a piss first. He was heating snow for instant coffee while he pulled out his phone and tried to get service again. There was nothing. He stalked a little further away but he was nervous about leaving Kate that far. Still nothing.

There was hardly any sun overhead, the clouds were dark and snow was still falling. He moved back to the fire and pulled off the melted snow. He added more wood to it to keep it going for a while before he moved to pull his pack down from the tree. The pulley system he had rigged was crude but it worked to keep the wild animals away from his stash of food. He pulled out the supplies he wanted before hiking his bag back up into the tree. Securing the rope he moved and slipped back into the tent after checking on the fire once again. He mixed his coffee and slid into the bag with the still sleeping Kate. He sipped at his mug and watched her. She was pale still, but at least she was sleeping. He played with his phone a bit and slipped the lock back and forth. It wasn't until the third or fourth time that he realized the battery was close to dead. He killed the power.

He would have to find some sort of service soon otherwise they would be stranded there for days, if not longer. There was no way he could carry her out and down to their car in that amount of snow and the terrain they had covered on the way up. They would essentially be stuck there.


	8. Surprise Yellow

The sun was slowly setting in their underground world and she glanced at her files that she had completed. Magnus had been working hard all day. She had holed herself up in her office and had only left the quiet and peaceful room for the rest of Will's ice cream, which she added to the list of food to be sent in from the surface on their next shipment. Erika had rebounded nicely from her infection but Magnus was still insisting on restricted work. At first she had little protest from the woman; however a few days after the medication started kicking into her system the complaints had been registered. That might have been the other reason that she was hiding out in her office.

She was just setting the empty bowl on the tray in the corner of the room where she knew her old friend would come and retrieve it when she felt the electricity singeing the air. Drawing in a slow and deep breath she turned to find John standing by her desk. Darkly dressed in black, it stood stark against his skin. He was towering but his lips were upturned in a slight smile. She debated on ignoring him but instead raised her eyebrows and waited for an explanation. John was slow to answer, his mind reeling with what to say to her. "There's a shipment of red listed abnormals that is supposed to be sold in Gold Coast. I thought you might like to know."

Eyes roved over his form, judging him as he stood before her. "And what would you like to do about it?" Her head cocked to the side when she saw his feet threaten to move, but he remained still.

"Helen." His eyes softened, his voice dipped down and his thumb brushed over his forefingers in a slight and almost unnoticeable movement. "I don't know what to do. I…" She could hear the air seep into his lungs and release slowly. "Do you remember when we met, at Oxford all those years ago?" There was something niggling at the edge of his tone that told her this conversation, this story, was so important that she decided to be patient and wait it out.

"Of course, John, we were in the library, physics class if I recall correctly. You needed a book but it was already occupied."

"Not quite. It was halfway through the course and I was failing." She raised an eyebrow at him. "I was failing the class and if I did I would not have been permitted to continue my studies. James had tried to help me, but I had worn his patience thin. You would have been the top student in the class, had you not been auditing." She continued to look at him as his story continued. His lips quirked upwards. "You were most beautiful when studying. Your hair always falling in your face, but you would never just brush it out of the way, you would stubbornly blow at it until it became to frustrating and shove it behind your ear." His smile had grown as the story continued.

"Yeah, I remember." Her eyes were slightly crinkled at the corners.

He nodded and moved back to the point of the story. "I asked you for that book for two reasons. The first was to make your acquaintance. The second was because I didn't know what else to do. I was failing the class and you were my last option."

"Ah," she took a step towards him and nodded. "I think I understand now." She didn't wait for him to continue, she just barreled forward. "It's been so long since you've had this peace that you're lost. You don't know where to go or what to do. It's the first time that you've felt like you can be accepted and yet, you can't." She stopped a few feet away from him. There was a long pause where she said nothing and he was waiting on the edge of a dark canyon for her next words. "How many abnormals are there?"

"Twelve." The number came out on a breath and he didn't realize how much tension had been building in his chest.

"When is it due to arrive?"

"Three hours."

"Three? Dear lord, John, cutting it a little close aren't you?" She smiled at him and he couldn't help but return the favor.

"Considering I almost didn't come can you blame me for the short notice?"

She bit her lip before letting if pop out from between her teeth suddenly. "No, I suppose I can't. I take it you'll be transporting us?" He nodded. "I need twenty." He nodded and she moved to her desk. She dialed Henry on their new system and watched as his face popped up. "Henry, I'll be gone for a few hours. You and my old friend are going to have to take care of any emergencies. Declan's available if anything goes pear shaped."

"Got it Doc. Where you headed?"

"Australia." She sighed and looked at John before ending the call. She smiled and slipped out of the room glad when he didn't follow. She smoothed her hands over her blouse and left for her rooms. Quickly, she changed into field gear and found John standing at her door when she opened it to leave. "Really, John? Eager much?"

He grinned in a way she hadn't seen in ages. "Excited." He grasped her hand, entwining their fingers and teleported them onto the vessel that was still miles out at sea. He whispered into her ear when they landed. "Hush." He held her close and watched as two men walked through the boxes, guns at their hips and looking around the hold. They remained silent until the men left and turned the lock on the door. She moved away from him and stepped out into the center of the room.

"Alright John, this is your heist. What's the plan?"

He hummed. "How about I teleport them out, you watch over the rest."

"And where do you plan on teleporting them to?"

"The Sanctuary of course."

"The docks." His brow rose and she stopped a moment. Shaking her head she went on, "The Sanctuary is fine." He bowed curtly and grabbed hold of two boxes before teleporting with a smile.

Helen walked around the room counting the crates and checking on the abnormals through the tiny peepholes. She wasn't willing to lift any of the lids fearing that one might escape and be violent. He came back into the hold with no warning and left with two more crates before she could utter a word. It happened multiple times and soon enough the room was empty except for the last two. He stopped then and stood before her smiling. "Thieves in the dark of night." Her head canted and her brows rose before falling suddenly. "Henry's already started intake."

"Good." When she saw him pause and halt for a second she encouraged him. "Go on, I'll be here when you get back. I'm not going anywhere on a ship in the middle of the ocean."

He bowed and took the last two crates away. As soon as he had disappeared she heard the metal door slam open. She turned and flipped the gun from her back in front of her but it was too late. The wet cloth was pressed over her mouth and she took a deep breath in suddenly from the move. It was seconds before she slowly slid to the cold metal floor of the ship.

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Will was huddled with Kate at the base of a large tree while the blizzard raged. He'd given up on the fire pit about an hour earlier and had dragged the tent to its current location. The wind was whipping through the forest causing the branches that were heavy with wet snow to snap and fall to the ground that was far below.

The shaking in her body was becoming too much for him. It wasn't because she was cold, he had managed to keep her warm and out of danger of hypothermia. She was scared. Kate had confessed to him not ten minutes before that she was terrified of storms. They heard a loud crash behind them and she buried her face in his neck trying to block out all sound, light, and feeling of the wind. The edges of the tent were crashing down on their faces making it feel as though they were suffocating in the darkness of the night.

The two sleeping bags were wrapped around their bodies. The flashlights they had brought had died the day before and his cellphone battery was completely gone to hell. He heard the pop of the branch far too late to do anything about it. He pressed back into the trunk of the tree and sincerely hoped they had gone to a mountain that was bloated with caves. Instead they were stuck in the Rockies, with tall trees and crazy fish that changed the weather on whim.

When the tree limb landed he cried out in pain as it shattered both of his legs under the weight and pressure of the force. Kate moved suddenly fiddling with the blankets surrounding them until she could lift off the wood. It took her a few tries to get it completely off him and by the end she was coughing a fit again. She slowly scooted up his body until she could see his face. His eyes were closed and his breathing was coming in short and sharp rasps. "Will. Will!" She frantically called her fingers squeezing his arms tightly.

He didn't answer for what seemed like ever and it wasn't until she smacked him clear across the face that his eyes opened. "What?" He ground it out.

"Stay with me."

"I'm with you." He groaned and when he tried to move slightly and the pain increased. "This is not good." He took a deep breath and his face went pale in the darkness. "This is really not good." His eyes rolled back into his head before he passed out.


	9. Panicked Yellow

The room was dark. Loud breathing was all she could hear over the raging in her ears and it was noisy and taking over her concentration. Minutes passed before she realized that it was her own rapid intake and letting go of air. She blinked her eyes rapidly but there was no light and thus she could see nothing. Her hands were tied behind her back and when she tried to move her feet she discovered they were wrapped together as well. Mentally checking the rest of her body she felt nothing wrong except a residual headache that was plaguing the center and front of her head. She didn't call out to anyone. She didn't want to know if anyone was there. Instead she waited patiently to see what would happen.

Hours. It had to have been hours since she had awoke and was lying there awake with no sounds of footsteps, with no light, with no food that her stomach was insistently telling her it wanted, and no clue as to where she was. She guessed that she was still on the ship. Perhaps she was hidden away in a bulkhead because she could hear the quiet lapping of water against a hard surface but nothing else. The sound was soothing and she soon found herself drifting back into sleep.

The door opening surprised her out of slumber and the light shining in hurt her eyes. She was guessing that it had been days since she had been locked in the tiny room. She'd flipped sides multiple times against the hard surface when her bones started to hurt from the weight of her body. She'd gone to sleep and awoken on many occasions. So when the door opened she was shocked. A small browned man popped his head into the room and she squinted at him. He started speaking quietly and in a language that she didn't understand, it sounded like gibberish to her ears. The door was quietly shut without warning and her opportunity was gone.

It wasn't long before it was opened again and a bag of Cheetos was shoved in before the door slammed shut and she heard it lock. She waited while her eyes adjusted and slipped her hands from behind her back to her front. Slowly rolling she found the bag by touch and ripped it open bringing the salty food to her lips. She bit down tenuously taking her time, not wanting to upset her stomach any more that it should be after days with no food and then sudden junk being forced into it. Half the bag was gone when she decided she should hoard the rest. She rolled the top of it and pressed it into the corner of her small enclosure.

She had been right to save it. Three more days must have passed before the man again opened the door. This time there was a bottle of water that was shoved into the room. As soon as the door was closing she reached for it and twisted the cap drinking a quarter of its contents. It took much effort on her part to make herself stop gulping down the cool liquid, but she needed to save it. This routine carried on for longer than she cared to admit, and as the days passed while she was waiting, she grew weaker.

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John was wrought with panic. He had returned the vessel. She had been gone. He's scoured the thing from top to bottom, rampaged through the crew members bullying them trying to get answers out of them and he'd found none. He'd gone back and forth from the Sanctuary to the ship to Australia more times than he cared to admit and he'd all but lost trace of her. The ship was on its way back to Taiwan and he was having difficulty teleporting to it as it moved across the waters.

Three weeks had passed and there had been no sign or word from her. The Sanctuary was in a panic and he'd dealt with MacRae more than he ever cared for. The man was a bull-headed pig with no sense of authority, leadership, or wit. Declan had all but ordered him to stay put while he took over her precious life's work and put the entire blame of his little escapade on him and his ruthless inability to think about anyone but himself. Emergencies were erupting all over the Sanctuary as news of Helen's long-time disappearance leaked out and abnormals began to react. John was pacing back and forth in her study while MacRae and Henry had run off to deal with some crisis or another.

He stopped and glanced at her desk seeing a picture of their daughter smiling back at him. He picked up the frame and slid a finger over the glass. One more time. He would comb through the bloody vessel one more time. He set the wood back down and teleported from the room.

The landing was jarring and he was almost knocked off his feet. He was in the hold where he'd last seen her. The room was once again filled with crates and boxes that were being transported across the seas. He turned sharply when he heard the scuttling in the corner. He saw the slim figure disappear into the black. Turning his head to the side he stepped forward quietly following the form. It was like following a mouse.

As soon as he thought he was close it would disappear into a tiny hole only to reemerge as he stepped away. He must have followed the damn thing around the room for an hour before he jabbed out his hand and pulled up the scrawny man by his neck. It grimaced back at him, its teeth rotted and eyes sunken from lack of nourishment. Its breath was rank and John had to hold his own air in his lungs while he stared at it. He wondered silently if it spoke. "Where is she?" His voice was deep and quiet. Its eyes raced from side to side looking at the two doors into the room. Fear. It was afraid. John decided to raise his voice. "Where is she? Where's Helen?" He was tempted to squeeze his fingers but he readily resisted the urge.

It wasn't long before the stare-down that John was giving it resulted in a response. His hands made a gesture to his hair and brought it down in waves. He did it twice before John set him down and again it looked curiously at him. John wasn't sure if it was even human with the way his eyes were wide and never blinking. One could never be sure in their line of work. It jerked its head to the side and John moved to follow.

They wound their way through the crates and through the boxes until it came to a small hatch in the wall. It lifted the metal and it slid away easily. John watched him climb through it before letting out a huff of air and scrunching his body to fit into the tiny opening. He followed along on hands and knees until he came to a second opening. Inside it was pitch black with a rancid smell wafting out. John let his eyes adjust to the light and he saw her curled in a ball. He reached forward and latched a hand onto her arm. He also grabbed the thing he had found and teleported back to the Sanctuary.

He brought the tiny man, he had determined it was at least a human hybrid if it was an abnormal to the intake room and let Henry have his way with him after he had brought Helen to the infirmary. Biggie immediately set up an IV of fluids and changed her into scrubs. He checked her over and found little damage in the way of injury. Weight loss and dehydration were her only symptoms. John stalked back in with MacRae on his heels. "She was in that bloody hold for three weeks." John muttered before leaning over and checking on the woman himself.

"You should have found her sooner."

Slate eyes turned on the man. "I'd like to see you find that hold. Seemed the imp was protecting her. He probably grabbed her when the crew came in for their check of cargo and then didn't know what to do with her." John stepped away and glared at the man until he heard the soft moan. He turned suddenly and brushed her hair back. "Helen, wake up."

She slowly opened her eyes and hid against the light. "How long?"

Declan stepped over into her line of sight and risked a glance to the man. "Three weeks."

"Declan?" She was mumbling softly. She moaned, "Where's Will?" Suddenly he looked up at John with an expression of utter shock and confusion on his face. "Where's Will?" She repeated the question and covered her eyes so she could open them enough to see the man she was asking.

"I don't know. On a mission right?"

"Did he find the fish?"

"Did he what?"

She moaned again. "Did he find the fish?"

Declan shook his head at the question looking to John for any help. "I don't know what you're talking about Magnus."

"Rockies. He and Kate went…" she took a deep breath and held off on the overwhelming feeling of exhaustion that was taking over her body. "To the Rockies to find fish."

Declan looked at his pad and scrolled through it until he found what he wanted. A mission request for Will and Kate with flight arrangements there and back: dates that come and gone with no word from them. "Shit." He stormed out of the room and Helen looked at John who remained.

"He'll find them." She nodded her head and fell into sleep.


	10. Soothing Yellow Glow

The next time she woke up she was more with it. She asked again where Will was and with the answer she received fury pulled straight from right between her eyes. She'd forced John to bring her a portable pole, transferred her IV and stalked barefoot through the hallways to her office to have a face to face confrontation with one Declan MacRae. She didn't say anything when she entered the room. She gave him a look of utter disappointment and moved to sit in a chair. He watched her, carefully, waiting for the moment when she would snap. He'd seen her yell and shout; he'd seen her take down an entire force of agents by herself during a fit of rage over indecency. So when she quietly and reverently watched him, his teeth started to itch and his nerves were on their wits end and his stomach was twisting into different kinds of knots that he didn't even know existed.

"I'm so sorry, Magnus."

"How did you not notice that they hadn't returned?"

"I don't think you understand what your disappearance has done to this place."

"That's no excuse."

He nodded in agreement. "I know. We have two teams out looking for them now and Henry is trying to get their last location based on Will's phone call."

There was a pause while she thought about all that was going on and all that she had missed. Three weeks. She should never have sent him on that mission. After just recovering from the ordeal of abnormality and the energy creature being excised from his body—she should not have done it. "Any news?"

"None."

Again there was a long pause while she thought through her next statements. "You will be put on report for this."

"I had hoped as much."

She raised an eyebrow and turned her head. "I don't know what the final decision will be." She waited until she saw his nod of agreement and understanding before continuing on. "I will be joining the search."

"Magnus…"

"No argument, Declan." She wasn't going to budge in her decision and she was John would rail against her but she didn't care. "I'll be leaving in a few hours. You are in charge until I return." Slowly she maneuvered her body to stand, grabbed the pole and made her way back down to the infirmary. She removed the plastic from her body and slipped on shoes before going to her room to change. She found John and grabbed hold of his arm waiting to be teleported to the cold November Rockies.

Upon arrival she pulled her hood over her head and shivered when the cold force of wind brushed against her cheeks. John did not pay mind to her instead looking around. He had landed where Declan's two teams had set up base in looking for the two wayward souls. She immediately took command of the situation and was filled in on what had happened thus far in the search. She was trudging through the snow that was up to her knees in the center of the roadway; she didn't want to think about how much snow had fallen in the mountains.

They had found the car about ten minutes before her arrival and were digging it out of a snow bank. Magnus glanced at John before shuffling onto the snowmobile and driving away. He was left staring at the monitors that displayed satellite readings of the weather patterns and of location of team members.

The car was rather unhelpful in finding their location as she suspected it would be. She found the maps in it and that was it, everything else was spick and span clean like it was still fresh from the rental agency. She pulled out the maps and opened them studying the trails and roads on it. Deciding on which one Kate would most likely have chosen she headed the team that went that direction. She and John were on one snowmobile teetering through the woods while two men were behind her with supplies. They followed closely until they came to a large clearing. She stopped the engine and stepped off her eyes scanning around. "This is where a lake is. I thought they might have stayed close by. Fan out."

Walking away to her right she glanced quickly behind her as each team member took another path. They were calling out their names and searching as best they could. Her radio flickered and she heard another team that had gone a little further south of their location trying to get one of the vehicles out of the snow that it had gotten stuck in. She called her own team back and took the snowshoes off the back of the second machine. Handing them out to each individual she sighed. "Be careful, I don't want anyone else to get hurt or lost." She slipped hers over her boots and started back the way she had come from. "Will! Kate!" She called out and listened to her voice echo and become distorted through the trees and snow.

She was about to turn back after walking ahead for three hours. She had no leads and she feared moving any further from her other teammates. The two that had followed her in had already headed back for their mandatory break and returned. She was pushing through. John remained out with her combing through the woods, but remained silent in his search. "Will! Kate!" Her voice echoed again.

"Doc?"

Helen's head snapped to the left where she heard the voice coming from. She started charging in that direction calling Kate's name out. She stumbled in the snow and almost fell forward, but caught herself before face-planting. Suddenly the woman appeared next to her, standing there leaning against a tree. Helen grinned. "Kate! I'm so glad to find you." She took a second to look her over. She had lost a lot of weight, her cheeks were gaunt and hollow, and her eyes were bulged with large purple circles underneath. She was holding her side carefully and putting little weight on her left leg. "Where's Will?"

Kate shook her head and nodded it in the other direction. "He can't walk. Tree limb fell and snapped both his legs."

"Take me to him."

The young Indian grimaced and began to move slowly down a path that Magnus must have missed earlier. It was partially worn into the ground, most likely by the local animals foraging for food. They walked another twenty minutes before Kate stopped and pulled aside a large tree branch. "In here." She let Magnus bend low and enter follow quickly. Looking around she saw many branches built up to create a stable shelter with a hole in the roof on the far side to let out the smoke from a small burning fire. Magnus turned and saw Will resting against the base of the tree trunk that had been his home for far too long. She moved over to him and began to assess his injuries running her fingers from head to foot.

"You had us so worried."

"We didn't think you were coming." His eyes locked with Kate's and she nodded at him. "It's been so long."

"We got held up." Magnus sat back on her haunches and cupped his cheek.

"No offense, Magnus, but you don't look too good yourself."

She hummed and bit her lip forcing the smile from her lips. "Yes, well, that was part of the hold up. But now I'm afraid, we need to get you out of here and I have just the solution." His head turned to the side in a questioning gaze. Magnus pulled her radio from her pocket and began to speak into the microphone. "John, would you come to my location please. I've found them."

The wait wasn't long before she heard the teleport outside the enclosure. The radio bubbled again with a question ringing in her ears. "Did you say that you found them?"

It was then that she did let her lips curl upwards. "Yes, I did find them. You can end the search John will be teleporting us back to the Sanctuary for medical care."

"Got it." The reply came as ominous and joyous. John pulled back the tree and looked in.

Magnus looked over her should at him to see his curiosity. "Take Kate first, she has some frost bite and could use a hot cup of coffee I'm sure. You can come back for the two of us." She waited until they were gone before leaning down on her knees and pressing her lips to his quickly. It was all that she could do before John returned and teleported them home.

Will was laid up on the infirmary bed with her checking him over. She was reticently quiet, as was he, and it was worrying him. Finally, when he was sure she must be finished with her poking and prodding and complimenting of Kate's resetting of the bones he got up the courage to ask. "What happened, Magnus?"

She sat heavily next to him after setting the clipboard aside. "Three weeks ago John arrived with intelligence on a shipment of abnormals that were being sold in Australia. It was the day that you were due to return. There was a complication and I was out of commission for the following three weeks. Somehow, in my absence and yours there was a mix-up and the dates of your mission were lost. No one was waiting for you to come back. I'm so sorry, Will. It's inexcusable."

"Well, it's been remedied." He looked over at Kate who was lightly dozing.

Helen bowed her head gently. "I'd hardly call it remedied, Will. You have two broken legs, multiple fractures, frost bite on all your toes, a bit on your fingers and nose, you're underweight, but luckily not dehydrated."

"Lots to drink when there's an abundance of snow."

She rolled her eyes and once again leaned forward to kiss him. Will took the opportunity for what it was and parted his lips. He hadn't known how much he missed her until this moment. His hands lifted and cupped her cheeks keeping her in place while his tongue slipped out to taste. He sighed and pulled away carefully. "What is it, Will?" She watched him like a hawk, noting every change in his demeanor.

"I never thought I would get to do that again." He caught the slight blush in her cheeks before she smiled and moved in closer to capture his mouth once again.


	11. Dawning Yellow Delights

She was pulling off both his casts and as soon as his skin was exposed to the air he stared itching at the flesh. He was sighing, five weeks in the damned things and finally, finally he could scratch that itch. She started to slowly rub lotion into the now very irritated skin. He'd been holed up, hobbling around and doing paper work. He was thoroughly through with it all. She had neatly avoided him only staying in his presence for short amounts of time and changing the subject every time he brought it up that they still had to talk. He was also thoroughly through with her doing that to him. She would kiss him, when no one else was looking; she would smile at him, when no one else was looking but she would not talk to him.

His leg was being twisted side to side: he had to bend it, straighten it, move his foot and wiggle his toes. She declared him fit for light duty. Still no missions until he finished some good physical therapy which, of course, she would be directing. She was getting ready to leave, he could see it in her eyes and the way she was trying to end the conversation. He smiled and sat up grabbing her hand and pulling her down to sit on the infirmary bed next to him. "Magnus," he tilted his head down and gave her a puppy dog look. He started again brushing his thumb over the top of her hand. "Helen. We have to talk at some point."

"I know."

"You promised we would."

"I know."

"Do I have to kidnap you and take you someplace secluded or lock us in a tiny room to get you to talk to me?"

She did smile at that and finally gave in, and leaning down to softly and gingerly press lips to his. "No, we can talk if you like."

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

There was a very awkward pause in the conversation while he tried to figure out how just to begin this talk that he has practically just begged her for. "So… um… my abnormality…"

"It might come back, we don't know. Your DNA sequence is not completely back to normal so there are residual effects still lingering, you just have to figure out what those are and what they mean." He was cautious when he smiled at her and lifted his right hand to her temple. This time there was no burning pain that seared through her head, it was only a soft warming and she smiled when she felt his unease. "Exactly like that." When he removed his hand the feelings remained for a few seconds before fading. He was grinning.

Will lay back against the pillows on the bed and watched her eagerly. "I didn't want to talk to you about medical stuff. We all know I've heard enough of that in the past few months."

"I thought as much." She paused and looked at their hands that were entwined, grazing her thumb nail over his knuckles and smiling at the sensation. "I don't love you just because you were an abnormal for a time, and I never wanted you to become one." Her words were soft and delicately said. Her eyes were locked on their hands and she refused to make eye contact with him. Helen Magnus was not a woman who was rarely embarrassed or nervous but at that moment she was both. She was a woman who made a decision and stood her ground.

"Then why do you love me? Because for the life of me I can't come up with any other reason."

She smiled at his comment before drawing in a deep and prolonged breath. "I started loving you over a hundred years ago Will. I don't remember the exact moment when I realized it, but something about us had changed. You weren't the wayward boy that was lost and looking for his place anymore. You were mine and I couldn't live without you." She risked a glance in his direction. "I lived without you for so long and I didn't know if when I came back you would still be my Will. I had a lot of time to reflect on that, more time that you could ever know. I love you for you, Will. For your witty comments, sharp tongue, incredible brain. For your compassion and consideration of others and your passion for life."

The grin on his face was so big that he couldn't contain it. He leaned in and smacked his lips loudly against hers. "Wow."

She smiled wanly and hummed looking down at their still tangled hands. "Yes, but I can't give you what you want." She paused bracing herself to speak again, "That's why I never…"

"What do you mean what I want?"

Her eyes dipped up to meet his before looking back down again. "Balance." The word cut through him sharper than he thought it could. He had told her that, on many occasions, but there was no way he could find that balance with or without her in his life. Balance was an unattainable goal that he hoped to have and yet knew he never would.

"Balance is in the eye of the beholder." He moved to press his chest against her arm and front. She turned her head slightly and his mouth was on hers in a way she had only felt once or twice before. He was so tender and compassionate as he led her through the movements. He pulled back slowly and rested two fingers against her temple and his forehead against hers. She could feel the calm and peace washing over him. The stress as it left is body was overwhelming and it began to leave hers as well. "Four months ago I would have never imagined this would be what happened."

She almost snorted and kissed him quickly. "I can attest to that, the majority of the time you've been here, in the infirmary. No more, Will. I say no more injuries."

"And I quite agree." The air around them grew still and quiet and his hand slid up the side of her body, from breast to hip. "Do you have some time?"

Her head moved back and she looked over at his face before glancing at her watch. "I have a few minutes, why?"

"What do you have to go do?"

"I have a meeting with my old friend. He's helping me with something."

"How much time?" He turned her wrist so he could look at her watch.

"Maybe twenty or thirty minutes."

"Good." He stood suddenly and pulled her to her feet. He was moving slower than he normally would have, but after just getting his casts off she didn't blame him. He took her hand and led her down the hallway to the tiny room that no one would ever look for them in, the very same room that she had brought him to almost four months before. Shutting the door after she entered he stood against her back and pressed kisses along the line of her neck. "I'm assuming this is acceptable after our discussion."

He felt her head tilt and swished her hair back over her shoulder. She hummed gently. "Do you love me?" His movements stopped and he turned her to face him. Her eyes were intense and locked with his.

"Of course, Helen. I love you more than I think you know. More than I think I know." He cupped her cheek and she leaned into the move. "I love you because you're strong, independent, brilliant, hard-working, stubborn, ruthless, opinionated, a master of deceit…" at the look on her face he decided to swing his name calling back around. "Beautiful, sexy, did I mention brilliant?" She smiled. "That's you, all wrapped up in one damn sexy package and I would have it no other way."

"I can't give you what you want."

"What I want, Helen, is to be happy. I want to be satisfied and fulfilled and I sincerely think that you can do that for me." She took a deep breath and nodded slightly. "Why are you so worried about this?"

She shook her head, "It's nothing." She moved in close and kissed him again, smiling against his mouth. "Care to continue? My time grows short."

"Are you sure?" His thumb pressed against her lower lip after he pulled back to watch her reaction. "We don't have to if you still want to talk. We all know how hard it is to get you to talk." She did smile at that and shook her head lightly.

"I'm fine, Will. Really, I promise."

"Good, because I certainly plan on having my wicked way with you in the next," he lifted her wrist and looked at the hands that were slowly ticking, "twenty-five minutes."

"Do you now? And what exactly will you be doing?"

"Hmmm, kissing you all over your body."

"Hardly enough time to fully undress don't you think." The teasing tone in her voice was terse but it slipped right by him.

"Well then, I'll have to rethink my methods." He unbuttoned her jacket and licked his lips at the silky camisole he found underneath. "Why do I never get to see these?"

"There's a reason there's a jacket to cover them."

"Yeah, to tease me more." He grinned and jerked the jacket over her shoulders. His fingers slipped under the straps and moved from her collar bone down to the top of the shirt. He snapped the strap of her bra lightly and grinned at the face she made when it rebounded and stung her skin.

"Play nice, Will."


	12. Embracing Yellow

Lips were fully on her mouth in under a millisecond and she was being walked backwards until the shelves hit her spine. He stopped and trailed hands down her sides until he reached as far down her skirt as possible. Tediously, he lifted the material up inch by inch until his fingertips hit hot skin. She sighed and leaned back closing her eyes on the slow release of a breath of air. He moved her skirt up to her hips and held it there while swishing his fingers over her panty line.

Helen's hands gripped the metal shelves and her knuckles turned white while she waited for his next move. Taking his time to feel around the junction between her thighs and hips he felt the tender skin heating. His mouth was on her neck again, his teeth scraping over her soft skin leaving red trails behind. He felt her chest start to rise faster as he made his way down to the tops of her breasts. One of her hands flew to the back of his head and tightened in his hair, a soft moan leaving her throat.

Carefully he tugged on the material and pulled it down her legs to just below her knees. He slid his hand up and rubbed carefully with his palm. Her forehead dropped down onto his shoulder and she drew in a deep breath. "God Will."

"Want me to stop?"

"No! Don't ever stop." She was breathing heavily again, her face buried against his shirt. She moaned when he slipped a finger inside and pulled it back out quickly. Biting her lip hard, she breathed and waited for his next move. He didn't make it. He remained perfectly still waiting on her. It took minutes before she turned to look at him, her eyes soft and watery. "Why did you stop?"

"I thought you wanted to know what I was going to do."

"Then by all means, pray tell dear William."

His neck craned to the side so that his lips could close the gap between them. His tongue dashed out quickly before pulling back. "I'm going to kiss you senseless."

"A hard feat, are you up for the task?"

"I believe so." He pressed forward again but kept his face millimeters from hers. The tension was coiling low in her stomach.

"Will…?"

"Hmmm?"

"Will you get on with it already?"

"Gladly." But he waited another few seconds before diving in. His teeth scraped against her lower lip and his head pressed hers back until her neck was straight and his was tilted. His hand was moving in a counter rhythm to his tongue against her bundle of nerves, but he did not push in his fingers again. The motion had her entire body rocking against his and he smiled when he felt her mind let go. He slowed the embrace and pulled back with a crazy grin on his face. "Senseless yet?"

"Cheeky." She kissed him back and moved a hand to cover his shoving one of his fingers inside her along with one of her own. She groaned as the heat began to flutter from her core to the top of her skin.

"Demanding."

"Would you have it any other way?"

He pursed his lips and cocked his head sharply to the side. "Maybe every once in a while. I'd like to see you spread eagled and tied to the bed posts, but that might just be me."

The eyebrow above her right eye arched higher than he thought he had ever seen it go. "Really?" She wiggled her finger and pressed his against her insides and held onto the moan in her throat.

"Uh huh." His words were mumbled because his lips were at the base of her neck.

She swallowed hard. "We could do that." She laughed out loud when he pulled back and looked at her with a look of wonderment on his face.

"You're not kidding."

Giggling she responded, "Of course I'm not kidding, Will. Sometimes I quite enjoy being tied up." He kissed her soundly again and wiggled his finger of his own means until she was whimpering against him. He moved down the column of her neck again until he decided to kneel. "Be careful," her fingers carded through his hair and he smiled back up at her. Shifting her legs he leaned forward and pressed quiet lips to her thigh.

She watched as he moved over her body, teasing her by going closer and then further away from exactly what she wanted. She let him set the pace even if her time was limited. This was mostly for him. His tongue slid over her entrance and she settled further back against the shelving unit. He jabbed his tongue in and out rapidly holding her legs tightly with as much pressure as he possibly could to hold her still and in place.

The cries tore from her throat and she tightened her fingers pulling sharply at his hair. "I need…" She took a deep and hopefully settling breath. "I need to lay down Will." He grinned and held her in place his tongue circling her clit. "Will, now." The last two words were issued from between clenched teeth when she started to slide down to the cold cement ground below. Her knees collided right next to his and he cupped her cheeks, her hair catching in his fingers. He kissed her and spun their bodies so that she was lying against the cool floor. Moving down her body again, he continued where right he left off when she had made her demand. His tongue moved against her until her hips were bucking against him. She was calling out his name when the orgasm ripped through her body.

She was being pulled back under when he shoved three fingers into her body and began to move rapidly, his tongue keeping the same rhythm as before. She was grasping at his head, her knees high in the air pinned to the ground only by her toes while the second wave cascaded through her body. He finally released her and moved up to gently rub his mouth to hers. She smiled while unzipping his jeans and flipped open his belt buckle. He slid into her, his hand high on her waist to steady himself. She pecked his lips and then flipped them.

Squeezing her muscles she began to move up and down. His nails dug into her legs, the crescents piercing the first few layers of skin. Her body rocked on top of his; she bent down and let her hair fall in his face kissing his lips quickly. She grinned and giggled. "I love you, Will." She pressed down hard and turned her hips causing his eyes to clench shut and a moan to emit passed his clenched teeth and lips. She kept the movement up until she felt him spill hotly into her.

She waited for his breathing to recover, his muscles to relax, and his eyes to slowly peek open. Resting on top of him was a wonderful feeling. All their times before had been frantic and quick. It hadn't been about slow and simple love, it had been about heated sex and getting off. She hummed and pressed down kissing him gently. His fingers tangled in her hair and held her face to his so that he could deepen the embrace.

Tenuously she pulled back, placing soft kisses to ease out of the embrace. "I have to go." She eventually slipped off him and stood over his prone form.

"I know."

She shimmied her underwear up her legs, slipped back into her heels that had somehow come off during the interim of their activities. Drawing her skirt back down her legs she held out a hand to help him up. He wrapped his arms around her middle as soon as he was standing and started ravishing her lips again. Giggling she pushed a hand against his chest. "Will, I need to get going."

"Uh huh." Again his lips were on hers enticing her to stay. He was walking her against the wall.

Slipping away from him quickly she smiled and threw a flirtatious glance over her shoulder before walking down the hall to meet with her old friend. She noted that everything in the room was set up and ready for her. Taking a deep breath she ignored the look that Biggie gave her and began to closer double checking that all the instruments were in place.

Will found her hours later in her room lying on her bed with a light throw over her legs. She was facing the window, her eyes watching the dark sky. He climbed onto the bed and kissed her cheek. She turned her head and smiled. "Whatcha doing?" He lay down next to her and wrapped an arm around her middle.

"Just resting, long day." She squeezed his hand and settled her face deeper into the pillow. "Stay with me a bit?"

"Always." His face was pressed into her hair and he let his mind wander. The sun had set many hours before and he really should be sleeping, especially since she wanted him up early the next morning and all his paperwork finished and into her by noon. He hadn't realized that she'd fallen asleep until he rested up on his elbow and went to ask her a question. Her eyes were shut and her breathing even and regulated. Lying back down, he pressed closer and felt her move against him. "Helen, always beautiful." His fingers caressed her cheek and before he knew it, he was falling under slumber's spell.


	13. Yellow Rising

Will stalked into her office to register a complaint. She was eating his ice cream again and he was thoroughly done with it. It had to stop; either that or she had to just order more for their weekly shipments because he wasn't making it through to the end of the week. He stopped when he realized that she wasn't there. It wasn't like he was not allowed in the room when she was absent but for some reason this office felt different than her last one. Looking around he noted that it looked very much her. The colors fit her, the paintings and decorations. The large windows were covered with cascading fabric that she never shut to block out the view.

Yet for some reason he hesitated. He was uncomfortable standing in the center of the room to wait for her return. It was an odd sensation running through his nerves that very much left him feeling on edge. Something was off, he had woken to her empty bed, but he had figured that would be the case. Still, something didn't quite feel right.

Helen was leaning over her desk looking at her monitors waiting for the test results to come through and answer her questions. She ran the quicker one first, deciding that it would be easier and less stressful to have that answer before the second. She had grabbed the sample that she and her old friend and retrieved the previous day during the procedure and some left over samples she had gathered before from the two men. Flicking her thumb over the edge of the space key she made a clicking sound with each movement. She sighed and her mind brought her back to earlier that morning.

The sun hadn't even risen yet when she'd woken in his warm embrace. She smiled and turned to face him, tracing a soft finger over his cheek and lips before pressing her mouth tenderly against his sleeping form. She had slipped from the bed and moved to her closet preparing to dress. Standing in front of the mirror she ran hands down her body and noticed how she had filled out since her little excursion in the bulkhead of the ship. She had gained her weight back nicely and quickly. Will however, still had a bit to gain, but she imagined that would change now that he was up and walking about. Slipping into a skirt and jacket she smoothed it over her stomach letting it linger before making her way to her office. She had spent the better part of the morning there and had finally decided she needed to go down to the labs and run those tests.

Which is where she was now, waiting for the results to come it. Again she flicked her thumb over the space bar and sat up straight when she heard his footfalls in the corridor. She hit the keys and blocked the screen but it was too late, Will had seen his name. "What was that?"

"Nothing, just a standard blood test."

He turned his head and looked at her, judging her. "You have got to stop eating my ice cream." He smiled quickly. "Especially if you want me to put on the weight and not yourself." He flicked a finger over her nose but she didn't respond in the way he thought she would.

"I have not been putting on weight."

"Of course you have." He was slightly taken aback by her comment. "You were supposed to gain weight; I'm not saying that you're getting fat or chubby." Lips formed a perfect "O" before she turned back to look at the now black screen, hoping that he left so she could see the results that were supposed to come in at any minute. "Helen, what is it?"

"Nothing, did you finish your reports?"

"Most of them." When she didn't turn to face him he leaned over and input her password into the computer so the lock released and the screen became colorful with results. He saw his name and he saw Nikola's name: his was highlighted. "What is this?"

"I…"

He scrolled down further. "This is a paternity test."

"Will."

He stepped back before she could continue. His body moved far away from her until he was almost to the door. "You're pregnant?"

"Will, I didn't mean for you to find out this way."

It looked as though he was going to speak. She was standing now, her hands by her sides urging him with her mind and heart to come back into the room. "I can't believe you didn't tell me. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't know how."

"That's not it." The look he gave her was hard and defensive. "You didn't want me to know. You had plenty of chances to tell me Helen, but no. You had to keep it to yourself; you had to keep it a secret. Why? Is it because I'm not good enough? Because you think I won't be there for you?" He hummed and twisted his head slightly. "No, it's because you didn't know. You were gallivanting around and didn't know who the father was and instead of just talking to me about it you took matters into your own hands and kept secrets that shouldn't have been kept."

"Will." She stepped forward, but he cut her off.

"No. I can't talk to you right now." His eyes narrowed and he left the room at a fast pace, dust on his heels. Helen drew in a deep breath and sat heavily back on the stool to read the results.

Scanning further down, she saw that the answer was right in front of her. "Will." She whispered his name as a lone tear slipped over her cheek. Standing suddenly she forwent the second test and swiftly moved out of the room after locking everything down. She had to find him. He wasn't in her office or his, his room or hers. Sighing heavily, she tried to contact him via the communications system, but he didn't answer. She didn't think he would.

Moving slowly she mulled over every place that he could be. Finally she walked outside and moved toward the tree and the waterfalls that she and Declan were supposed to picnic under. There was a bench out there that almost no one knew about on the other side of the stream and she planned to sit there and wait it out. She needed to talk to him, and she needed to do it that day but she had to regroup her own thoughts. Why hadn't she told him?

Making it to the bench she saw him sitting there, hands covering his face and his back bent as he leaned forward with elbows on his knees. The sun was setting and it cast an orange hue over his form. Carefully she moved forward, she didn't want to startle him. Pressing a hand to his should she waited for him to look up at her. He scooted over and she sat next to him, her hand sliding from his shoulder to his knee. "I'm so sorry." Her head tilted down as she anxiously awaited his response.

"Me too." His fingers covered hers and he squeezed lightly. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I was frightened. I needed to know if you were the father before I told you. I couldn't be with you and force you to care for a child that wasn't yours."

"I wish you had asked me."

"It was my prerogative."

He hummed, his eyes scanning the water as it fell from the cliff. "It was. Still, I wish you had told me." A silence came over them and he kept her hand in his. "How far along are you?"

"Fourteen weeks."

He nodded and continued to look away from her. "Am I the father?"

She bit her lip still debating whether or not to tell him. He did have a right to know, but at the same time it would be so much easier for him if she just lied. He didn't want this life; he didn't need this kind of stress in his life. The words slipped from her mouth before she had any further thoughts on the matter. "You are."

Drawing in a deep breath he released it quickly. "Thank god." Her head shot up at the comment and she looked at him curiously. "Can you imagine Tesla being a father?" She did smile then, but only slightly. Again there was a pause. "Will the kid have an abnormality?"

"I don't know. I didn't wait for the results."

He turned to her suddenly and kissed her quickly. "I don't care if our baby is an abnormal or not."

"Our baby?"

"Yes, our baby." He nodded and held firm. "If you're having this child I'm going to be a part of its life whether or not you want me to."

"Why?"

He smiled then. "It's simple really, Helen. I love you and whether or not this was planned, I plan on making the most of it." She grinned and looked down at their hands squeezing lightly. "But really, you have to stop eating my ice cream."

She shrugged. "Cravings, Will. I couldn't help myself." She stopped momentarily and cupped his cheek. "This is the only child I want. I won't have another one after this. I can't lose another child after I lose this one."

Leaning forward his lips rubbed against hers gently. "I get it; I would never have asked this of you."

"Well, we do deal with unforeseen circumstances."

"That we do." His mouth completely covered hers and his tongue dashed out for a taste. Each became lost in the embrace as the sun set.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm still taking reviews and donations for Sanctuary for Kids. Thus far (since all my accounts are included) we're up to 35 reviews and $17.50 being donated, but AO3 is seriously falling behind in the love. We should fix that.
> 
> Review: can be anything, read, nice, done, hated it, donate now. And it all counts!
> 
> Arones


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